Erinyes
by The Iron Youth
Summary: Recently revived from a frigid grave, a Hunter is reintroduced to a vastly changed world. As the Darkness draws in, uncertain alliances must be forged in order to ensure survival. Guardians are fighting across the solar system, but no one is sure what's just beyond the black.
1. Introduction

CONTENT WARNING

Outside of what facts can be gathered in game, some elements of which are unhelpfully vague, Bungie has thus far provided little canon for Destiny in terms of lore. Though the studio has also released grimoire cards to add context, these descriptions are short and rarely reveal anything more than a hint of more information to come. Due to this shortage of canon facts, some of the lore-related elements in this fic will be made up.

Should the upcoming expansions of Destiny or other future releases that reveal lore contradict this fic, as they are more than likely will, this fic may be updated. I also may not remember to do so, depending on the gravity of the lore, and how it affects this story. So, apologies ahead of time if anything contradicts upcoming information.

Furthermore, while I'm not one for gratuitous sex scenes, there may be nswf content in the future. Those chapters will have titles marked as such.


	2. Cry Havoc

"It worked! Guardian, you have no idea how long I've been looking for you."

Tisiphone took in a breath for the first time in what felt like centuries, and she shortly let out a violent cough as her lungs tried to clear themselves. Her body curled involuntarily in on itself, hands grasping at snow and dirt. There hadn't been snow on the ground, last she could remember. Though truth be told, she could remember very little. Shaking, she moved to pick herself up off the ground, but only made it to all fours, her bones groaning, muscles straining with the simple movement. Her eyes burned- the light was so bright- and her lungs themselves felt like dried jerky.

"You're actually alive." A bright, blue light was hovering around the woman's face, forcing her to squint in order to make out its shape. It was a machine, made up of red angled surfaces with a black orb in the center and a blue optic glowing out at her. This had to be the source of the voice speaking to her- there wasn't anything else around that was moving. Moving to sit down once more, Tis pushed it away from her face with an unceremonious shove.

"What are you?" Tis' voice rasped up from her throat, dry and cracking in the air. She went to shield her eyes with her hand, but paused, staring at her fingers. She knew, definitely, that they were hers, but they felt like a stranger's. Like she'd been switched into someone else's body entirely. She forced herself to stand, using the car she had lain next to for support. "What happened?" Her body was still armored- it looked old and worn. Surprisingly, her corpse had not scavenged, unless the machine had collected or synthesized some armor for her. Her helmet felt intact, as well- her newly recreated eyes were just overly sensitive, it would seem.

"I'm a Ghost. An autonomous, and sentient, creation of the Traveler. And now, I'm yours. You've been dead for quite some time. I brought you back." The machine, its back half twisting around, sounded proud of itself.

As Tis' eyes grew more accustomed to the light, she could see a vastly altered environment from what she remembered. Grass and weeds erupted from the surface of what had once been a massive highway, now gridlocked with long-rusted vehicles, the rest of its surface hidden beneath the grasses. She had been dead for a long time. "How- how long?"

"I'm not sure," the Ghost said. "I was created by the Traveler after the Collapse. But let's go- Earth isn't the same anymore. I have to get you to the City. Hold still." The Ghost, small and mostly unassuming, zipped toward Tis' head, causing her to flinch away, but it didn't matter. The Ghost fused with her helmet all the same, though very little seemed to have changed. "Let's go. I'll project a symbol to help guide you. You don't have a Sparrow link right now, either."

"So it's gonna be a long walk," Tis grumbled as a diamond appeared on her HUD. "And while we're on the way, you can tell me everything. Like why you keep calling me Guardian."

An alien howl echoed over the empty plain, causing a cold shiver to race down Tis' spine. "Let's find you a weapon, first," the Ghost said.

"And this is the Tower. The home of the Guardians. We have gunsmiths, armor vendors and a shipwright. The Speaker will want to see you first, though." Projecting another diamond into Tis' vision, the Ghost seemed to feel almost content. Their trek had taken quite some time, but it had done very little of the walking. Or floating. The Fallen were thorough scavengers, and had had centuries to pick the remains of Old Russia clean of anything that would have gotten them quicker travel. The Ghost had synthesized her, it said, with enough mass and hydration to not have to worry about either for several days, but that didn't stop her gut from rumbling at the mere thought of food. After the rumbling, a nearly palpable ache formed in her stomach. With a defeated sigh, the woman started toward the western portion of the Tower.

* * *

><p>The Speaker's chamber housed an impressive structure of spinning metal, rings dancing inside of one another, all around a central orb of green light. Beyond it, through an expansive window, the Traveler itself could be seen, hovering quietly over the rest of the City. "There was a time when we were much more powerful," a soft, warm voice interrupted Tisiphone's thoughts. She looked over to the find the Speaker, a robed priest, anonymous and unreadable behind the white face of his mask. "But that was long ago. Until it wakes and finds its voice, I am the one who speaks for the Traveler," he said, sounding almost lonely as he turned to survey the giant machine. "You must have no end of questions, Guardian." He turned to look at Tis now, and she could almost feel him examining her, determining her worth. He likely saw thousands of Guardians, and who knew how many newly resurrected faces per day. He turned back to the Traveler, quiet for another moment. "In its dying breath, the Traveler created the Ghosts to seek out those who can wield its Light as a weapon- Guardians, to protect us, and do what the Traveler itself no longer can."<p>

"What happened to it?" Tis asked, staring out at the blank surface of the Traveler. Much of it was still white, still pristine, but other portions looked rotten, decrepit. Such a massive creation, something so powerful couldn't have simply stopped working, given up. It couldn't have just _died_.

The Speaker took in a heavy breath and folded his hands together as he moved toward a small, spinning diorama of the solar system. "I could tell you of the Great Battle, centuries ago, how the Traveler was crippled. I could tell you of the power of the Darkness, its ancient enemy. There are many tales told throughout the City to frighten children. Lately, those tales have stopped. Now, the children are frightened anyway." That, it seemed, would be her only answer. Vague half-statements meant to say very little. At the same time, from the sounds of it, she was only missing out on a long, winding tale that she would likely learn on her own, later. "The Darkness is coming back," he continued. "We will not survive it this time." His tone was foreboding, but not apocalyptic. There had to be some hope in the Guardians.

"Its armies surround us. The Fallen are just the beginning," her Ghost said.

"What can I do?"

"You must push back the Darkness," the Speaker said, squaring his shoulders again as his hidden eyes returned to her. "Guardians are fighting on Earth and beyond. Join them. Your Ghost will guide you. I only hope he chose wisely." The Speaker turned now, quietly dismissing the newly formed pair as he strode back up his steps.

Tis glanced at the small floating machine. Apparently it was male. "I did," he said, proud of himself once again. "I'm sure of it. We're in this together now."

"I didn't see you do any of the walking," she griped at him. "Now, food," she said as she crossed the glass walkway out of the Speaker's chambers, a hand pressed into the armor over her abdomen.

Munching on a nutrition bar, Tis continued to watch the skies of the City. There were always ships coming or going, it seemed. Most of them came to the Tower itself, and at least half of them dropped off Guardians before piloting themselves away to the hangar, likely by the Ghosts. Her feet and back still ached, but there was a noticeable lack of nausea-inducing hunger. "So, every Guardian had their own ship?"

"Most of them," her Ghost said. "Scavenged, mostly, but the most successful can buy them newer with enough Glimmer."

"Seems to be the general state of things," Tis had been given a better weapon, free from the rust that marred the one they had been able to find, and a newer chest plate, but nothing else. Even Cayde-6, her Vanguard Commander, had little more than a finger point for her.

"The Tower and the City still have to have functioning economies. They can't give out everything for free. Be glad you got a new weapon with the one that we had to trade in."

* * *

><p>Tis let out a low sigh, crumpling the wrapper of her meal into a ball. "So I guess I need a ship."<p>

"I have a ship," a new voice said, and Tisiphone turned to find another woman staring at her with glowing blue eyes. An Awoken, with deep violet skin and jet black hair fashioned into a braid, which matched circular dots that crossed her face. "And I hear you have a gun. I'm in need of some help." This stranger crossed her arms, the muzzle of a sniper rifle peeking out from behind her knee. She was tall, lean, and her cloak was new. Her armor bore the signs of conflict, but it was definitely newer, definitely in a better state of repair.

"What kind of help?" Tis' eyes narrowed and her arms crossed her chest, mimicking the other's stance. Hopefully she wasn't looking for bait.

"I have a mission in the old Cosmodrome that requires a bit more firepower than I can muster alone. Some Hive troops have been spotted on Earth, and they can not be allowed to gain a foothold," the woman said. "My Ghost can send yours the data, see if you're interested." The woman's Ghost appeared, and its optic flashed as it transmitted something to Tis' own. "There's cash involved."

"I'll do it," Tis said, the decision made before she even had enough time to truly think it through. If her Ghost could revive her once, he could do it again. She was also in desperate need of a ship, and money, and at least if she had a partner, her odds of dying might decrease a bit.

"Good," the other woman nodded. "Get some sleep. We leave tomorrow before dawn, and you look like you're dead on your feet," she said before turning to disappear around a corner.

"You didn't even ask her name. You weren't distracted, were you guardian?" Tis' Ghost hovered around her shoulder, his tone obviously teasing. "Lucky for you, I got it from her Ghost."

"I didn't ask your name, either," she said, tone pointed. "Do you even have a name?"

"That's because I raised you from the dead. If someone does something like that for you, you don't need to know their name. She just proposed something that might return you to the grave."

"You brought me back from a heap of bones. I'm sure you can fix a bullet to the brain," Tis waved a hand, trying not to think about whether or not being shot in the head actually hurt.

"Her name is Megaera, by the way, and she's been at this for a while. Typically solo, from what her Ghost's records show. They were assigned a mission by Cayde-6 to eradicate what seems to be a Hive nest. If she's gathering allies, it's going to be a fight."

"What is a Hive nest?"

"The Hive are a race of, well, monsters that appear to be servants to the Darkness. We don't know that much, truthfully, but if they're on Earth, that means bad things are going to be happening."


	3. Dogs of War

"The Fallen have been keeping the old Skywatch under tight hold. Which is great, because that's where we're headed," Megaera's Ghost said as the jumpship dropped into the atmosphere. "Reports from the last Guardian to go down there to investigate why the Fallen were so active in the area say there are a huge number of Hive. He never reported back."

"He's probably dead," Megaera said, staring pointedly at Tisiphone. "Permanently. The System's not an easy place anymore." Tis quirked an eyebrow in response. "I haven't spent a lot of time on Luna, but what the Hive have done there..." The Awoken shook her head. "They're dangerous, and I don't want you going in unprepared. That's how you don't come back out. And I _will_ be coming back out." Her dark eyes were sharp, and Tis shifted in discomfort as the jumpship shook with turbulence. The rumbling continued for several minutes before Megaera's Ghost made another announcement.

"We're here," it said, its own mechanical voice fairly feminine in tone.

"Put us down," Megaera said without pause. "Outside Skywatch."

Without another pause, the Ghost transported them down to the surface, and with an abrupt drop of six inches or so, the pair were back on the surface of Earth, surrounded by snow, rust, and Fallen. The steppes were marked by uneven terrain, jagged and frozen and peppered here and there with the same rotting industrial buildings familiar to the Cosmodrome, with freight containers scattered about as well.

"It's the building with the large dish on top," Tis' Ghost offered. "The Hive are underground."

"Fantastic," Tis said, eyeing the building. It jutted up three stories into the sky, it's old satellite dish waiting for signals that would never resume.

The pair approached the building, rifles at the ready. The place was oddly quiet, only a few Dregs guarding the inside. Most of its guards were outside, it would seem, not wanting to risk being inside and closer to the Hive nest. Large piles of putrid black pustules coated the walls in some areas, lumping up in the corners, some spewing black smoke. All things indicative of a Hive infestation, Tis' Ghost informed her. Approaching a segmented door, Megaera's ghost phased out from her helmet and hovered over to a panel on the wall. "The Fallen sealed it tight," she said. "They must have sealed it after that other Guardian didn't come back out. I can get it open." Short blue beams of light began to pass from the Ghost to the panel as she began to unlock the door.

"I don't know what we're going to find," Megaera said, her tone frank. "Keep your eyes up and your ears open. These guys like to shriek. They'll let you know when they're coming."

"What about the other Guardian?"

"He's dead. Ghost was probably destroyed, too." Megaera's eyes took on a hard note again. She had no intentions of wasting time looking for their lost fellow. "If we can clear the nest, your Ghost can look for him."

"I'll keep a scanner running. It won't find dead Ghosts, but if they're alive, we'll find them," Tis' Ghost offered from within the woman's helmet. Tis gave a slight nod of acknowledgement.

Several more minutes passed before the door jerked and then started upward, rolling into itself toward the ceiling. The next room was dark; apparently it had been dug into the side of the cliff, and there weren't any windows to let in the natural light. Probably why the hive had picked it. Megaera lifted her auto rifle to her shoulder as she stepped forward, her Ghost producing a small patch of light. "Eyes up," she repeated, crossing the threshold.

Lifting her own rifle, Tis' own Ghost produced another small area of light, which was little comfort in the dead silence of the facility. The room was large, and mostly open with a long walkway wrapping around from the left. "I'm sensing lots of movement up ahead," he warned, his mechanical voice quiet.

A soft shuffling noise could be heard, which quickly grew until distant shrieks could be heard. Alien and off-key, it caused Tis to shudder in the dark. There was no warning before Megaera's weapon went off, bullets biting into a ghastly pale humanoid shape, leaping out at her from the darkness. Tis had only a trio of glowing green eyes to alert her to the monster sneaking toward her. Assuming the glow was a head, she opened fire herself only to dodge to the side as a flurry of blue bolts came out of the darkness toward her. Ducking behind a pillar, she took a breath, only to be greeted with another of the freakish monstrosities jumping forward, its long fingers forming wickedly pointed claws. A knife to the chest ended the issue, but she was moving again, aiming for any pinpricks of green light, as the Hive seemed to be smart enough to stay just out of the range of her Ghost's light before leaping out at her.

Once the room was clear, she looked to see Megaera ending the life of one last alien with a wicked twist of her boot. "This was only their preliminary force. Let's keep moving," the Awoken said, reloading her weapon with steady fingers. Tis did the same, keeping it at her shoulder.

They moved up a flight of rickety metal stairs deeper into the compound, moving as quickly as silence would allow. More debris indicative of abandonment had piled up at every possible place, and more black pustules coated the walls and parts of the floors. The Ghosts were even silent, as far as Tis could tell as they passed sharp crystal casting a sickly green light. The rest of the facility's lights seemed to be functional, a fact Tis was quite thankful for.

They came to another room, this one alive with the sound of movement. As they approached a wall with shot-out windows, they were noticed, and once again, the ghastly creatures with bony head plates and dagger-like fingers launched themselves toward the Guardians.

"There's a Wizard! We have to kill it!" Tis' Ghost warned as they entered the room proper. From an upper level of the room, she watched another monstrosity drift out from behind what looked to be some kind of generator. Its body hovered a few feet off the ground, and was draped in what she really hoped were red robes with ragged, filthy edges, and the whole body was surrounded by an odd orange aura. Thinking quickly, Megaera threw a grenade in its direction, the explosion causing it to rock unsteadily and let out a violent hiss. Its clawed hands raised as the pair let loose their magazines. Eventually its aura faded, apparently it had been acting as some kind of shielding. Another set of three-eyed monsters shuffled out from some back corridor, screeching with their peculiar weapons raised as well. They were made short work of, the Guardians' own shieldings holding up well enough that they came away with minimal damage to their armor.

They searched, despite the silence, for more, hiding in the dark corners. Finally satisfied, they took stock of the filthy facility. A large cylindrical pillar stood in the center of the room, surrounded by a circle of ancient displays. Everywhere was refuse, piles of junk, and the black goo that infested the rest of the facility. A generator sat in the back, and a handful of Fallen weapons lay about. "Run another scan," Tis said to her Ghost, which promptly phased out from her helmet.

She watched as Megaera turned to her, her face unreadable, save the sharpness of her eyes. She still didn't think they would find his Ghost, a body. Tis' Ghost flittered around anyway, a green light scanning area after area. He moved about, working his way through the area, checking the corners, the crevices. Megaera fidgeted, fussing with her rifle.

"He must have gotten overwhelmed," she said. "He took a good number out before they got him, though, by the looks of how few were here when we showed up."

Tis nodded, trying not to imagine the terror of being overwhelmed by such a horrendous enemy, with tearing claws, gnashing teeth and horrible, glowing green eyes.

"Here!" The Ghost announced, proud of itself. "I found a Ghost. It's in standby, that must be why the Hive didn't notice it." Tis stepped over to him, slinging her rifle over her shoulder before pushing some of the trash out of the way to reveal a small, white machine. She plucked it out of the refuse, wiping off what she could. "Now, let me see..." her own red Ghost hovered closer to her, a blue light connecting the two Ghosts.

Slowly, a flickering light appeared in the center, mirroring her own Ghosts. As it stabilized, the new Ghost began to hover above her hands. Finally, its parts shifted, spinning in a pattern Tis had see her own preform. It shook slightly, as if finishing its reboot. "Good morning," it said, mechanical voice quiet. "I'm so glad you've come for us, I had almost begun to lose hope. Now, let me just find him." Just as Tis' own Ghost had, it began to scan the room, green light again scanning every surface, every corner.

It took a moment before the machine let out an exclamation of excitement. "I found him!" It was a shout of relief as it went to work, restoring its Guardian's body. Tis' own ghost flew over, lending some of his energy to the stranger's. Given the state of decay and damage done by the Hive, it took several minutes before the man was restored, his form suddenly synthesized several inches above the floor. His armor had been restored too, and he stood head and shoulders over Tis. He was a broad man, with heavy armor. He looked like it would have taken a veritable army of Hive to have killed him.

He took a moment, examining his arms and looking around the room, staring at Tis, and then at Megaera for several seconds before he spoke. "You came for me."

"No," Megaera cut him off. "_We_ came for the Hive. _She_ insisted that we look for you." She indicated to Tis with a tilt of her head.

"Thank you," he said, nodding his head. "I didn't think there would be so many."

"We wiped out what we could find. A Wizard, and some Acolytes, a pack of Thralls..." Tis' Ghost flared his panels in pride as he explained. "And then we revived your Ghost."

"Thank you, again. My name is Alecto. How long have I been dead?"

"A few weeks," Megaera shrugged. "You have a ship?"

"Not anymore," his Ghost offered. "I had to sever my connection when I went into standby. I was trying to save as much power as I could, so as to not die while waiting for another Guardian."

"We have one," Tis spoke up. "We can get you back to the City."

"_I_ have a ship," Megaera corrected, "but yes, we can get you back to the city. First, are there any other sections of this facility where there might be Hive waiting us out? We came here to wipe them off the map, and I won't be leaving any behind."

"I am not finding any more signs of movement, except for us," Megaera's Ghost said. "But it probably wouldn't be a bad idea to double check. It's been so long since I've faced Hive. They may have evolved since then."

"Let's go," Megaera tilted her head, indicating that they should follow.

The new trio moved through the facility, checking every room, every crevice in which a Hive monstrosity might be hiding, but found only a few scattered Thralls. Their Ghosts could not make sense of the black slime or smoke, however, and once Megaera was satisfied, the three beamed back up to her ship, which had been waiting in orbit.

"We need to go see the Speaker," Alekto said as they all removed their helmets. His face was sharp, with a Roman nose, and light eyes. His head was shaved, or perhaps his Ghost hadn't bothered to synthesize his hair again, and his skin was a dark golden brown. "I don't know what that black crap was, but he might know. Might want to send a cleanup crew incase it's some kind of weird... Egg sac or something." Megaera frowned at him, but gave a nod.

"Then we can find out what he wants us to do next," Tis said.

"Right," Megaera continued to frown, appearing uncertain that it was necessary for them to remain a team. "Take us back to the City," she instructed her Ghost, taking up her seat on the cockpit.


	4. The First Circle

"And you say there were none left?" The Speaker asked, hands folded behind his back as he looked thoughtfully toward the Traveler.

"Correct," Tisiphone nodded. "Our Ghosts couldn't find anymore movement within the facility, and a visual check confirmed. If there were any left, it would be too few to make a difference. The Fallen may even have taken them out by now."

"Hmm. I see. Still, I've gotten more troubling reports regarding Fallen activity. That they seem agitated. It may be that they've discovered another nest." The Speaker let out a sigh. "We need to establish a presence in the Cosmodrome." Tis felt Megaera shift next to her, the word "we" clearly making her uncomfortable. "We haven't gotten any eyes on the ground yet, so you three will be a bit unprepared. I have faith in you, though. I will have another team set up a base of operations, temporary though it may be. While they are doing so, it will be your job to keep the Fallen distracted, and perhaps root out the other Hive nest. It is good to see that you have returned to us, Alekto, now I wish you three luck."

Clearly dismissed, the three exited the vaulted chamber, Megaera stalking her way across the walkway first.

* * *

><p>The building the vanguard team had chosen was small, and rickety, but then, so were most of the buildings that dotted old Russia. They had kicked most of the snow out and stamped down the dirt to make it as even as possible, before Tis, Megaera, and Alecto were sent outside. "Sweep," the massive Titan had said, motioning to the snow-dusted area before them.<p>

The building was a good distance from Skywatch, safe enough to prevent any large waves from being able to overwhelm their defenses. They would have to weave through a narrow canyon and then back up a fairly steep cliff. But there were Fallen on this side of the ravine, and they had to be taken care of before anything else could be done.

Megaera scuffed her boot, sniper rifle cradled in her arms. "I'll take a spot up top," she indicated the top of the building they were converting into their new headquarters. Tis nodded as Meg leapt up top with a loud _bang._

"Guess she'll take out anything too big and scary. Think we can handle the rest?" Tis tilted her head away from the building. They would be doing a sweep in growing concentric circles to weed out any Fallen in the area, including those who might be hiding in the small caves and rusty buildings that were hidden here and there.

"Yeah, we can do this. A few shanks, couple dregs. Nothing to worry about." Alecto held out a hand, and she bumped his knuckles with hers.

The sky darkened, mirroring night in a matter of seconds, and Tis' Ghost appeared on her HUD. "I think we're going to want to check into this," he said, tone ominous. But try as she might, Tis could find nothing of interest around them. Looking over to Alecto, she found him looking up, and she tilted her head back too, just in time to see a streak of smoke and blazing light come crashing from the sky, exploding as it hit the ground.

"WARSAT," Megaera called out. "That'll draw them out. Get to it."

Luckily enough, it had dropped only fifty yards or so away from their new home base, and a quick sprint put Tis and Alecto there before anyone else. "The Fallen will come and try to reclaim the satellite," her Ghost explained. "There's invaluable data in this thing. I and Alecto's Ghost will upload it to the city as long as you stay within three meters. Be ready." Tis nodded, setting her expression beneath her helmet as Alecto's Ghost phased out and began to scan the WARSAT, her own doing the same. They danced around the sphere, lights flickering across the sharp, reflective surface.

"Here they come," Alecto warned, lifting his scout rifle up to his shoulder. Tis watched as her motion tracker lit up on both sides, and she turned, covering Alecto's back, at least for the time being. Dregs weren't typically brave creatures, and she figured they would use the downed satellite to cover themselves, allowing them to jump out in small, failed ambushes.

The first pair of glowing eyes appeared, and met a short end in Tis' crosshairs. She could hear the dry bark of Alecto's rifle and the wails of the Fallen. It was just Dregs at first, with a couple of Shanks making for more of a nuisance than anything resembling a challenge. A deeper voice carrying over the frigid fields indicated a bigger threat, and a Captain quickly showed its crested head from behind an outcropping. Its markings were different, though, and its walk more exaggerated.

"Captain," she warned her teammates, and it was only seconds later that its head jerked back, one of Megaera's bullets lodging in its helmet. Tis brought her rifle up, aimed atA its chest, a volley of bullets causing it to stumble backwards before another loud explosion indicated a second shot by Megaera, and it dropped.

"He won't be the only one," Megaera warned, "There's a drop ship incoming, and they've probably got a Servitor on board. Or two." Her tone was bored, almost, but then, she wasn't the one with the war-shrieks bouncing all around her and bullets flying past her head. Maybe this was why she didn't have any teammates.

Tis jerked her magazine from its place, switching it out with a fresh one, watching as the Fallen leapt down from their ships. "Servitor," she announced, the purple orb floating lazily toward the ground, it's black eye centering on Alecto and herself as it spun in the air. Its deep tones could be heard from a distance, and Tis took a moment to wonder if they controlled the machine, or it was controlling them. But her moment of deep thought was shattered by a quick clattering of bullets, poorly aimed from the gun of a Dreg. Still, a few slammed into her shields, and she rolled to the side, aiming her rifle from a crouch and taking him down. A few more pounding shouts rang out, Megaera taking her shots carefully from her distant position.

Another Captain had landed, striding toward the WARSAT with unfailing confidence. A horde of Dregs appeared behind him, with at least a dozen Vandals. "Alecto!" Tis called, hurling a grenade into the mass of alien creatures. It stuck to the leg of a Dreg, taking it out along with a handful of others. The large man turned, but one hand left his gun and he began to charge, swinging his rifle behind his back he leapt, both hands clasping together before he came down, slamming his fists into the ground and sending a shockwave out from his hands. This sent the Fallen exploding out from him, the weaker Dregs cartwheeling through the air, the Vandals stumbling or collapsing, while the Captain itself was merely knocked back. Alecto pulled his weapon back into his hands, but wasn't quite quick enough.

The Captain swung his fist, slamming the back of its hand into Alecto's helmet with a sickening crack. The Titan went down, his shields already somewhat weakened by the bullets of the previous attackers. Tis was moving, clearing the smaller and already weakened vermin out before it was her and the Captain, her Ghost moving to Alecto's body where his own ghost hovered, working to revive him.

Her bullets seemed to be having little effect on the large alien, so she gave it up, slinging her rifle around in exchange for her shotgun. Its strides were carrying it toward her and a quicker and quicker pace, but she pulled the trigger and it stumbled; she pumped, and an empty shell sprung out, replaced in a second flat. She pulled the trigger again and it fell; she pumped, and fired one more time and its body went limp.

Alecto stumbled to his feet, and the Ghosts rushed back to the WARSAT, fluttering over it for a few more moments. "It's done," her Ghost said, his tone matter of fact, maybe even pleased with himself. "And I think that's all the Fallen in the area. But another check wouldn't be a bad idea."

"That is very easy for you to say," Tis answered, her tone pointed as she reloaded her shotgun and gave it one last pump before replacing it.


End file.
